Ken Salazar, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico under former President Joe Biden, said he became so frustrated with the White House's handling of border security that in July 2024 he considered launching his own presidential campaign.
Salazar served as ambassador for nearly four years and is releasing a book, "Borderlands: My Fight for an Inclusive America," on July 28. In it, he describes repeatedly petitioning the administration to designate a "border czar" to coordinate interagency response to the immigration crisis—a role that was instead given to then-Vice President Kamala Harris under the title of addressing migration's "root causes."
What the Right Is Saying
Republicans have seized on Salazar's criticisms of the Biden administration's border record. The admissions validate longstanding GOP arguments that Democrats mishandled immigration during Biden's presidency, providing ammunition for Trump-era enforcement policies.
"The book confirms what Republicans have been saying for years," said a Republican National Committee spokesperson in a statement to Politico. "Democrats ignored the crisis at our southern border and paid the price at the ballot box."
Trump continues to implement aggressive immigration enforcement measures despite polling showing half of Americans—including one-quarter of his own 2024 voters—view his mass deportations campaign as too aggressive.
What the Left Is Saying
Progressive Democrats have largely defended Harris's tenure as vice president and her work on Central American issues. Salazar acknowledges in his book that Harris addressed corruption in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador but argues this approach failed to stem migration flows.
"There was political failure to understand the reality of the crisis at the border, and the political consequence it would have on Democrats in the 2024 election," Salazar told Politico.
Salazar is positioning himself as an immigration advisor for potential 2028 Democratic presidential candidates. He has met with Arizona Sens. Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego about his "borderlands platform," which calls for fixing what he describes as broken borders while maintaining inclusive policies. A meeting is scheduled with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker.
What the Numbers Show
A Politico poll conducted in April found that 50 percent of Americans say Trump's mass deportation efforts are too aggressive, including 25 percent of those who voted for him in 2024. However, Republicans retain a broad trust advantage over Democrats on immigration policy overall.
CBP encountered approximately 2.4 million migrants crossing the southern border without legal authorization during fiscal year 2023 under Biden—the highest annual total on record at that time.
Salazar writes that he pressed White House officials as early as October 2023 to publicly acknowledge a "border crisis," a designation the administration resisted until shortly before the election.
The Bottom Line
Salazar's candid criticisms of his own party come as Democrats seek to rebuild their immigration platform ahead of the 2028 presidential cycle. His proposed "new North American alliance"—integrating U.S., Canadian, and Mexican supply chains and border operations—echoes former President John F. Kennedy's Alliance for Progress.
The book is likely to intensify intraparty debates about how Democrats should approach border security, an issue Republicans continue to hold an advantage on with voters. Spokespeople for Kelly, Gallego, and Pritzker did not respond to requests for comment on their meetings with Salazar.